Walter Emerson Baum was a descendent of immigrant farmers.
He was born in 1884. Baum loved his heritage and it came through
in his paintings. Besides being a painter, he was also a teacher
and a writer. For thirty years he wrote numerous newspaper articles
and in 1938, wrote the book Two Hundred Years about his
childhood. Baum's career as a painter started when he studied
under William Trego, a history artist, at the Pennsylvania Academy
of Fine Arts in Philadelphia.
Walter had a wife, (Flora), and four children. In 1925 his
reputation was greatly affected when he won the Jennie Sesnan
Gold Medal. This was a wonderful achievement and he became very
successful. He inspired many people as both a teacher and an artist.
He had a gentle personality and was an enthusiastic man. Throughout
the rest of his life he continued to touch the lives of the people
of West Rockhill and Pennridge with his beautiful talent and his
kind heart. Walter Baum died in 1956.
